Department of Political Science

The Honors Program in the Department of Political Science provides the opportunity for especially qualified majors to engage in research and course work more advanced than the normal undergraduate program.

Students who meet the minimum requirements for consideration (an overall GPA of at least 3.5 and a major GPA of at least 3.5 and a graduation date of the following Spring) will receive an invitation to submit materials in early February of their junior year. These materials include:

A statement of interest (1-2 pages): In this statement, students should discuss why he or she is interested in participating in the honors program, and describe a topic he or she might develop into a thesis.
The names of 2 or 3 faculty members who know the student's academic work (at least one in the Political Science department): The student SHOULD NOT submit letters of recommendation.
A sample of research and writing, such as a term paper or essay that represents the student's best work. It is preferable but not necessary that this work be from a political science or international studies course.

The faculty of the Political Science Department will review these materials and select the participants for the Honors Program. Only students who submit materials will be considered.

The Honors Program will be immediately supervised by an Honors Committee consisting of the department chair, the director of undergraduate studies, and the instructor(s) of Honors Tutorial. This committee will administer the program and advise students during their senior year.

The requirements of the program include:

passing with a grade of "B"or better the Political Science Honors Tutorial (POLS 495)
passing with a grade of "B" or better an advanced seminar (POLS 490S) or a graduate seminar of the student's choice
researching and writing an Honors Thesis (POLS 499)
successful completion of an oral examination on the student's Honors Thesis.

Schedule

The following schedule assumes May graduation. Students who will be graduated at other times should work out a modified schedule in consultation with the Honors Committee.

Fall Semester

Students will take Political Science 495 (4 semester hours).
Students must write an acceptable research proposal covering the Honors Thesis
topic. This research proposal must be submitted to the Honors Committee no later than the end of the semester.
Each student must set up a research committee consisting of a primary advisor from the Department of Political Science, a second reader drawn from the faculty of the Department of Political Science, and an Emory or Oxford College faculty member from outside the Political Science Department.
A student may elect to take an advanced seminar or a graduate seminar Fall Semester.

Spring Semester

Students will register for Political Science Honors Research (POLS 499; variable credit, up to eight hours).
Students must register for an advanced seminar or a graduate seminar if they have not taken one during Fall Semester.
Final draft of the thesis must be submitted to the student's research committee by mid-April.
The thesis must be defended orally before the research committee and submitted to the College Honors Committee by the deadline established by that Committee.

College Honors Program

PRINCIPLE

Honors Programs for outstanding students are offered during the senior year in most areas of concentration. These involve work that extends beyond ordinary course requirements and standards of performance. These programs are administered by the College Honors Committee, which must approve each departmental program.

ELIGIBILITY

All students with an overall average of at least 3.50 in the first three years and with at least a 3.50 average in the major subject will automatically be eligible for participation in the program. Final selection of those to participate, however, rests with the department concerned.

A list of eligible students will be furnished by the College to the Honors Committee and by it passed on to the appropriate department before pre-registration in the spring semester.

PROGRAM

The program will normally be confined to the senior year. The program outlined below applies to those departments offering graduate degrees, with the exception of Liberal Studies in which arrangements can be made for fulfilling requirements by using the facilities of relevant departments. Departments not offering graduate work may devise their own programs, subject to approval of the Honors Committee. The same applies to multi-disciplinary or joint-major programs.

Each honors student will be enrolled in a graduate seminar or a graduate course or, in special cases approved by the Honors Committee, in a course providing individual supervision and instruction.

Each honors student will, as part of the graduate work, complete a research project or a paper that will be the equivalent of a B.A. thesis. In the case of students pursuing a joint B.A./M.A. or B.S./M.S. program, the M.A./M.S. thesis will serve as the honors thesis.

Each honors student will do additional supervised reading or enroll in a special honors course or perform some additional special work.

Credit for the graduate work and the reading program is part of the hours required for the major. This will usually mean an increase of about four hours in the major department.

An examination, written and/or oral, covering the honors work (thesis and allied field) will be given during the last semester of the student's senior year. One examiner will be chosen from outside the department concerned. The names of the examiners will be reported to the Honors Committee along with the results of the examination. The deadlines for reporting results are printed in the College catalog. Examiners will recommend the degree of honors (honors, high honors, highest honors) to the Honors Committee, which will certify the list to the Registrar for printing in the Commencement program and on the students' diplomas.

DEGREE OF HONORS

HONORS (cum laude) is taken to mean satisfactory completion of the program, together with an overall average of 3.50.

HIGH HONORS (magna cum laude) is taken to mean completion of the program with outstanding performance, together with an overall average of 3.50. The thesis shall be of a quality sufficient for oral presentation to scholars in the candidate's field, or of a comparable standard appropriate to the discipline.

HIGHEST HONORS (summa cum laude) is taken to mean completion of the program with exceptional performance, together with an overall average of 3.50. The thesis shall be of a quality sufficient for submission for publication or of a comparable standard appropriate to the discipline. If the thesis meets this criterion, the 3.50 grade point average may be waived in exceptional cases.

HONORS THESIS

The original of the honors thesis (acid-free paper at least 20 pounds in weight) and one copy will be deposited with an official representative of the College Honors Committee. If a copy is to be bound for the student's department, an additional copy must be provided together with a binding request from the department. The cost of printing a departmental copy of their thesis shall be borne by the student.

To deposit the thesis, the student or the approving department shall deliver it to the Honors Committee representative. No folder, binder or special wrapper need be sent, but each honors thesis shall be placed in a separate envelope or box. No paper clips, staples, or clasps shall be used. The Honors Committee will not certify honors to the Registrar until the thesis has been deposited.

Honors theses will be bound by the Library in uniform binding. They will then be catalogued and kept together as a unit in the Special Collections Department of Woodruff Library.

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The Department of Political Science, 327 Tarbutton Hall, 1555 Dickey Drive, Atlanta, GA 30322, 404-727-6572 phone, 404-727-4586 fax
For web comments or questions, contact polisci@emory.edu. Last update October 19, 2009